386 FALCONRY 



complaint, care being taken to diminish every cause by which 

 inflammation can be maintained. Very soft and loose jesses 

 should be put on, and in cases of swelled foot a padded perch 

 and block should be used, or, better still, the hawk kept on a 

 mound of turf, and not on a perch at all. It will be found 

 that she will spend most of her time lying down, so that her 

 feet are relieved of all pressure. Gradually the tumour within 

 the foot will come to a head and the hardened core, at times 

 as big as a hazel nut, work its way out, when all that is neces- 

 sary is to anoint the open wound with goose-grease or vaseline, 

 and get it to heal as rapidly as possible. Hot fomentations 

 are sometimes used to bring the inflammation to a head rapidly ; 

 we cannot speak very highly of this treatment, but in the earlier 

 stages a lotion composed as follows has been found very use- 

 ful : Brandy, one wineglass ; vinegar, one wineglass. Steep in 

 the above a good handful of fresh parsley, keep in a covered 

 jar, and apply with a sponge three times daily. 



Many falconers attribute swelled feet to the use of hard 

 blocks or perches, and consider that all such resting-places 

 should be padded. Hawks, however, do not in a wild state 

 get padded perches to sit on, and we do not believe that 

 hard perches really induce the complaint, but more often the 

 constant strain on the feet caused by incessant jumping against 

 the jesses does so. The frequent concussion on a hard perch 

 may no doubt aggravate the evil, but the true remedy is to 

 keep the hawk so quiet as to remove the causes which induce 

 her to bate and jump, or, if necessary, keep her hooded or 

 even brailed till she learn to sit quiet. 



A simple improvement on the ordinary perch, which appears 

 to be founded on common sense, has lately been devised by 

 Captain Biddulph, one of our most successful Anglo-Indian 

 falconers ; it is merely the cutting of a groove half an inch wide 

 and a quarter of an inch deep along the top of the perch, so 

 that pressure is taken off the ball of the foot which rests in the 

 groove. It is probable that this may operate so as to check a 

 tendency to develop swelled feet in some hawks, which, though 



